Sample data
This is an example household so you can see the tool working.
Roth Conversion Optimizer
Money you keep
+$180K
more after tax at Pat 95 than converting nothing
Tax now
$96K
all-in, in your conversion years
Converting $574K between Pat 62 and 74 costs $70K in tax now, and moves that money somewhere it — and everything it earns from here — is never taxed again. It cuts your tax-deferred balance at Pat 95 to $630K — down from $1.2M — but does not empty it.
How much to convert
77% of the possible gain, for 42% of the full tax bill
Diminishing returns
How this is calculatedHide details
Why “Tax now” is bigger than the tax on the conversions — that number is only the income tax on the conversions themselves: what shows up on your tax returns, and what the yearly schedule adds up to. This figure also counts everything a conversion sets off in the same year — higher Medicare premiums, extra investment tax, lost health-insurance subsidies. The money you keep has already paid all of those, so the cost side includes them too.
Where the zones split — Up to Best value, each new $1 of tax adds at least $0.50 of estate; past it, less. Every stop up to Max still adds net money — at a shrinking rate.
What this rests on — Converting more prepays more tax on the strength of today’s assumptions.
Lifetime tax saved
$123K
over the whole plan
Converted
$574K
scheduled across your conversion years
Conversion years
13 (Pat 62–74)
before required distributions begin
Tax-deferred at Pat 95
$630K
was $1.2M
this plan does not empty it
What you keep
Tax-Deferred
Roth
RMDs begin — Pat 75
RMDs begin — Lee 75
With this strategyIf you convert nothing
Roth conversions shift money out of tax-deferred and into Roth. RMDs begin — Pat 75 and Lee 75. All balances are in today’s dollars.
Why this works
Tax per year
Tax this strategy pays
Tax if you convert nothing
You pay more tax in the conversion years and less afterwards. Everything is in today’s dollars.
IRMAA: clear every year
Best value is the last point on your own curve still earning $0.50 of estate per $1 of prepaid tax; it is offered only when it saves at least 20% of the conversion tax.
Roth Conversion Schedule
| Pat | Conversion | Why | Tax now | Tax laterThe tax these dollars draw in RMD years if left in the IRA — today’s dollars, estimated. | Saves | ACA subsidy | ACA net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 62 | $53.8K | Subsidy lostWhy not more this year: Converted up to the point where one more dollar would cost this year’s $28.1K health-insurance subsidy. | $2.2KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $2.2K. Total $2.2K. | $11.8K | $9.7KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $14,102 higher in today’s dollars. | $28.1K | $8.3K |
| 63 | $29.2K | Subsidy lostWhy not more this year: Converted up to the point where one more dollar would cost this year’s $11.4K health-insurance subsidy. | $0Tax on this conversion: . Total $0. | $6.4K | $6.4KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $13,454 higher in today’s dollars. | $11.4K | $9.3K |
| 64 | $23.2K | Subsidy lostWhy not more this year: Converted up to the point where one more dollar would cost this year’s $11.2K health-insurance subsidy. | $0Tax on this conversion: . Total $0. | $5.1K | $5.1KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. There is no whole-plan comparison for this year. | $11.2K | $8.6K |
| 65 | $36.5K | Gains rateWhy not more this year: Converting more would push your investment gains out of the 0% rate — each extra $1,000 costs about $270, not the $120 income tax alone would charge. | $4.4KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $4.4K, Federal capital gains $5. Total $4.4K. | $8.0K | $3.6KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $18,751 higher in today’s dollars. | $0 | $5.0K |
| 66 | $36.5K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $5.1KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $5.0K, Federal capital gains $155. Total $5.1K. | $8.0K | $2.9KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $15,265 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 67 | $42.3K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $6.0KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $6.0K, Federal capital gains $6. Total $6.0K. | $9.3K | $3.3KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $16,553 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 68 | $47.4K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $7.1KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $7.1K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $7.1K. | $10.4K | $3.3KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $11,714 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 69 | $48.2K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $7.3KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $7.3K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $7.3K. | $10.6K | $3.3KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $9,569 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 70 | $50.5K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $7.9KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $7.9K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $7.9K. | $11.1K | $3.2KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $9,386 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 71 | $53.3K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $8.6KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $8.6K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $8.6K. | $11.7K | $3.1KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $9,193 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 72 | $51.8K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $8.2KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $8.2K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $8.2K. | $11.4K | $3.2KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $8,990 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 73 | $54.9K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $7.8KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $7.8K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $7.8K. | $12.1K | $4.3KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $8,717 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| 74 | $46.6K | Best valueWhy not more this year: Best value stops here: past this point each $1 of conversion tax earns less than $0.50 of after-tax estate. Converting more still adds to your estate, at that lower rate — move the slider up toward Max. | $5.8KTax on this conversion: Federal (ordinary) $5.8K, Federal capital gains $0. Total $5.8K. | $10.2K | $4.5KSaves prices this year’s tax-rate difference alone. Whole plan, this conversion kept vs dropped: final after-tax estate $8,504 higher in today’s dollars. | — | — |
| Total | $574.2K | $70.4K |
These reasons describe the schedule the slider is showing.